Strong Tower Advisory Services Has $6.11 Million Position in 3M (NYSE:MMM)

Strong Tower Advisory Services lifted its holdings in shares of 3M (NYSE:MMM) by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 44,695 shares of the conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,552 shares during the period. 3M accounts for about 1.7% of Strong Tower Advisory Services’ portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Strong Tower Advisory Services’ holdings in 3M were worth $6,110,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in 3M by 2.9% in the second quarter. Fortis Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,001 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $307,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its holdings in 3M by 0.4% in the second quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 22,613 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $2,311,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. AMG National Trust Bank boosted its holdings in 3M by 3.1% in the second quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 3,326 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $340,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in 3M by 11.4% in the first quarter. Platinum Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,020 shares of the conglomerate’s stock valued at $108,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in 3M by 2.0% during the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 5,302 shares of the conglomerate’s stock worth $562,000 after buying an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.25% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on 3M from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Bank of America raised their target price on 3M from $120.00 to $143.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Wolfe Research upgraded 3M from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $125.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 13th. Argus upgraded 3M from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $145.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, StockNews.com cut 3M from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, 3M has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $127.64.

Insider Transactions at 3M

In other 3M news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $700,635.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 174,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,486,484.56. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other 3M news, Chairman Michael F. Roman sold 5,675 shares of 3M stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $123.46, for a total value of $700,635.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 174,036 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,486,484.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Theresa E. Reinseth sold 2,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.12, for a total value of $260,652.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 4,364 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $541,659.68. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

3M Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MMM traded down $0.01 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $133.45. 643,939 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,945,413. The company has a quick ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 1.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.95. 3M has a 12 month low of $71.12 and a 12 month high of $140.72. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $131.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $111.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.31 billion, a PE ratio of 78.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.95.

3M (NYSE:MMM) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The conglomerate reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.68 by $0.25. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.85 billion. 3M had a return on equity of 112.92% and a net margin of 3.08%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.17 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that 3M will post 7.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

3M Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 12th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 26th were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 26th. 3M’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 164.71%.

About 3M

3M Company provides diversified technology services in the United States and internationally. The company's Safety and Industrial segment offers industrial abrasives and finishing for metalworking applications; autobody repair solutions; closure systems for personal hygiene products, masking, and packaging materials; electrical products and materials for construction and maintenance, power distribution, and electrical original equipment manufacturers; structural adhesives and tapes; respiratory, hearing, eye, and fall protection solutions; and natural and color-coated mineral granules for shingles.